JOHNSON CITY, Tenn. (Jan. 1, 2025) – It was a record-setting performance for ETSU men’s basketball on New Year’s Day.
Behind a school-record 17 made threes and Jaden Seymour notching a triple-double, the Buccaneers opened Southern Conference play with an 84-69 win over VMI in front of 3,311 fans on Wednesday afternoon inside Freedom Hall.
John Buggs III was key in the record-setting performance as he scored a career-high 33 points on 10 made triples, marking the second straight game a Buccaneer scored at least 30 points. Buggs was 11-of-18 from the field and 10-of-16 from three, while adding three rebounds and three assists. The 10 made threes are tied for the second-most in program history with Courtney Pigram, while Buggs was one shy of tying the record set by Patrick Good back on Jan. 26, 2019, at Western Carolina. Buggs went off in the second half as he scored 24 points on 8-of-10 shooting and 7-of-9 from beyond the arc.
With Buggs lighting it up from long distance, Seymour consistently piled up the stats and registered the triple-double in the closing seconds. The Buccaneer preseason all-conference selectionstotaled 18 points, 10 rebounds and a career-high 10 assists to join Courtney Pigram and Tim Smith as the only ETSU players to accomplish the feat. Smith had 21 points, 10 rebounds and 10 assists against Kennesaw State on Jan. 25, 2006, and Pigram finished with 21 points, 10 rebounds and 10 assists against Wingate on Nov. 20, 2008. Seymour is the 14th Division I player this season to record a triple-double.
As a team, the Bucs shot 48 percent from the field (30-62) and 43 percent from beyond the arc (17-40). The previous record of 16 made triples was also set against VMI back on Jan. 18, 2021. The Blue & Gold tallied a season-high 25 assists, matching the most by an ETSU team since Feb. 20, 2018, against The Citadel. The Bucs were plus-2 on the glass, 36-34 and converted 11 offensive rebounds into 13 second-chance points.
With the win, ETSU improved to 8-6 overall and 1-0 in league play, while VMI dipped to 6-8, 0-1. The Bucs now lead the all-time series, 60-15, while winning six straight and 29 of the last 31 over the Keydets. In addition, the Bucs have won all eight games this season by double figures and improved to 7-1 at home.
ETSU wraps up its brief two-game homestand when the Bucs host Wofford Saturday at 4 p.m.
